Eurovision Was Traditionally a Campy Joy – But It Has Transformed Into a Calculated Tool to Whitewash War.
A recent term came to light a few months into the intensive bombing of Gaza by Israel. Referred to as WCNSF, it stands for “Child casualty without any family left”. This term is found only in Gaza, according to doctors such as child health specialists. Ordinarily, it is rare for doctors to treat a minor who has been bereaved of their entire family. Yet, there has been nothing “normal” regarding the devastating conflict in Gaza, where whole bloodlines have been wiped out and the number of children who have lost limbs is greater than that of anywhere else in the world. Nothing ordinary about many doctors coming back from a devastated terrain with accounts of children being intentionally shot at.
An Unimaginable Crisis In Spite Of a Supposed Ceasefire
The Gaza Strip continues to be hell on earth. Critical healthcare resources are being blocked those in need, and major human rights organizations assert that atrocities are ongoing. Officials disputes these allegations, just as it denies all charges it is implicated in. But while grieving children who lost parents are now suffering from the cold in improvised encampments, there is a piece of uplifting information: nothing is going to stop the Eurovision song contest from advancing its declared purpose of “unity and artistic sharing.” Organizers will continue to offer a welcoming platform for Israel, even though at least four European countries have now pulled out in protest. And this, apparently, is what global togetherness looks like.
The contest, notably prohibited Russia from participating in 2022 because of the “unprecedented crisis in Ukraine”. But the crisis in Gaza appears to be completely different.
A Selective Vision
Disregard the reality that Israel was accused of questionable voting tactics last year in what seems to have been an bid to politicise Eurovision. Ignore the report that a three-year-old girl was allegedly fatally struck in Gaza just days ago. Forget the fact that settler violence and systematic expulsions in the West Bank have increased dramatically. Overlook the situation that international journalists are still blocked from unfettered access in Gaza. This entire context, evidently, should be allowed to get in the way of Eurovision’s self-proclaimed spirit of unity.
The Pageant Proceeds Against a Backdrop of Unimaginable Suffering
Eurovision turns 70 next year – nearly twice the average life expectancy of an individual in Gaza now. The broadcast will air, but it will never be able to restore the pure, unadulterated fun it historically embodied. A competition that initially championed togetherness has devolved into a transparent instrument to sanitize military aggression.
